Finding Time

As a mother of three and the million other hats I wear, it is very difficult to find “me” time. Tell me if this sounds familiar to you. I am in the bath, magazine in hand relaxing, and in walks my son. No knock, just in he comes declaring he has to use the bathroom. Now I know from experience to ALWAYS have the curtain closed tight, but hello, I am in here.  Out he goes, and then one of my daughters will come in claiming the same dire need. I explain (OK sort of yell) that there is another bathroom downstairs only to be ignored.  My husband will sometimes need to get something, and always one of our pets feels the need to be in there with me. The dogs crack me up because if I was giving one of them a bath they run for the hills, but if I am IN the bath, I pose no threat. They will either lay on the rug forcing me to step over them or steal my magazine to go tear it up knowing I cannot get out and get it fast enough. Therefore, if getting a 20-minute bubble bath without a parade of people and animals is not possible, then taking a 45-plus minute run is almost out of the question.

This week has been filled with distractions both good and bad, and too many excuses to count. Today when I finally got out for a run after getting up at 6 a.m., letting the dogs out, feeding them and the cats. Letting them out again, securing them with one of my kids who woke up. Explained to the kid (now kids since it is almost 7) that I am going for a run, got dressed, told my husband I was going, and grabbed my iPod it was cut very short because I forgot to take my heart meds and had to stop. Come on! So back home I go and take the dogs for a walk instead. My plan was to walk them long and far and tire us all out, but one of my daughters begs to go with me so a shorter walk it must be again.

Tonight I find myself thinking, can I do this? Physically the answer is yes (more on the heart meds another time), but do I have the time? Not really. In order for me to train properly for the marathon, it is going to require not only my sacrifice, which I was willing to give, but the sacrifice of my family too. I will need to make training a priority and not just find time for it, but actually make time. This is going to require the planning of a full-scale military operation. The plotting, preparation and execution of the plan must be precise.

So tonight, I will sleep in my running clothes, iPod clutched in hand, shoes by the back door. When my eyes open, my feet will hit the hardwood quick and quietly fleeing from the house of my sleeping husband and children like a caged animal set free. Shoes on out the door and I will run. I will run like I am only of myself. I will run as if I have no cares, no chores and no conscience. I will run with the cool morning air waking me up as if I have been asleep for a year. I will run for a full 30 minutes. Then I will return home to take a bath and watch the parade.